Trap-nest.



No. 732,162. PATENTED JUNE 30, 1903. G. & W. BRAND.

TRAPNEST.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 20. 1903.

N0 MODEL.

Patented June 30, 1903.

PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE BRAND AND WVILLIAM BRAND, OF CAIRO, NEBRASKA.

TRAP-N EST.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 732,162, dated June 30,1903. Application filed February 20, 1903. Serial No. 144,241. (Nomodel.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, GEORGE BRAND and WILLIAMBRAND,citizensoftheUnitedStates, residing at Cairo, Hall county, Stateof Nebraska, (whose post-office address is Cairo, Hallcounty,-Nebraska,) have invented a new and useful Improvement inTrap-Nests, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates to improvements in nests for domestic fowls, andis designed to be placed upon shelves in modern sanitary fowl-houses;and the objects are, first, to provide a portable nest that may beeasily removed from the house for cleansing after the incubating periodis over; second, to provide an automatic closing trap-nest to protectthe sitting fowl from molestation during the incubating period, alsowhile laying the eggs, and to enable their keeper to catch the fowls ifhe desires to do so 5 third, to provide a cheap, simple, automatic nestthat any farmer can make with the tools and material he has at hand. Weattain these objects by a mechanism illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, in which-- Figure 1 is a sectional plan view out on line 1,Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a front elevation closed. Fig. 3 is a front elevationopen.

Similarlettersrefer to similarparts throughout the several views.

The cage a may be constructed of any suitable material, oblong in formand of sufficient height to accommodate the fowl, a nestingbox b, havinglevers c c, fixed to each side, extending two-thirds of length of thecage, where they are pivoted at d d to the sides of the cage (or slats)three or more inches upward from the bottom. A lever e, having a forkfat one end and a door 9 at the other end, is pivoted to a slat 76 by ascrew it. A screw Z is fixed in the corner of the nest-box b and engagesthe fork f. A cleat 7' is fixed diagonally across the front of cage a.This cleat has three functions. First, it prevents the door from beingpushed away; second, the lower end acts as a stop and prevents the doorg from falling too low; third, it also acts as a stop to preventthe doorfrom being lifted too high. The screw it may be moved forward orbackward, shortening or lengthening the lever in order to adjust theweight of the door to the weight of the fowl and eggs, which isnecessary as the eggs might over-balance the door and it would not dropdown when the fowl got off the nest.

In operation the cage is placed on a shelf in the fowl-house with asuitable lightingboard in front of it. The nest-box is filled with hayor other material. The lever-fulcrum his adjusted so the door will beheavier than the nest, when the door will fall down and open. When thefowl wishes to use the nest, she enters, and as soon as she steps uponthe nest she overbalances the door and it moves up and closes, and noother fowl or large animal can disturb her till she comes ofi the nest,which is a very important matter when hens are sitting.

We are aware that automatic trap-nests are old. Hence we do not claim itbroadly; but

What we do claim, and wish to secure by Letters Patent, is

The combination in a trap-nest of the nestbox having levers fixedhorizontally on each side, the free ends of said levers pivoted to acage or box, said nest-box provided with a screw fixed to the outercorner, the actuating-lever having a slot or fork at one end and a doorat the opposite end, said fork or slot adapted to engage the screw fixedon the cor nor of said box, a slat fixed to the front of the cageprovided with a fulcrum-screw adapted to engage thejactuating-lever, thestop-cleat fixed diagonally across the front of said cage, substantiallyas described.

GEORGE BRAND. WILLIAM BRAND. Witnesses:

J. W. DUNKEL, O. M. NORTH.

